Thread: Figuring curbside leaf removal

My advise.....don't offer curb side removal! Its never worth it. People rake all kinds of sticks, rocks and whatever else will damage your loader and expect to pay 50 bucks for it. We used to offer it but only ever did less than 5 and out of those 5 or so we took more time picking out good sized branches, rocks, dog leashes and anything else these people thought our "huge vac" could suck up.

All of my weekly lawn customers have me do full service fall clean-ups. There are some people in the towns that I service that just can't afford a $300.00 clean-up, or they just like to rake the leaves themselves. There are alot of companies around here that do "You rake them, we take them" and make a boatload of money doing so especially if you have a very efficient setup.

$300 for a clean up.....

that's part of your problem.

I service my clients weekly for fall clean ups and I charge them like $10/$15 extra for the 10/15 extra min I'm there dealing with the grass catcher and blowing out the mulch beds.

I service my clients weekly for fall clean ups and I charge them like $10/$15 extra for the 10/15 extra min I'm there dealing with the grass catcher and blowing out the mulch beds.

I'm not sure where you are located, but most of my lawns are pretty big and COVERED in oak trees $300.00 is not alot of money for a full service clean-up. Istart servicing my lawns bi-weekly in October until all the leaves fall, and it doesn't take anywhere near 10-15 minutes extra.

My advise.....don't offer curb side removal! Its never worth it. People rake all kinds of sticks, rocks and whatever else will damage your loader and expect to pay 50 bucks for it. We used to offer it but only ever did less than 5 and out of those 5 or so we took more time picking out good sized branches, rocks, dog leashes and anything else these people thought our "huge vac" could suck up.

So true. I no longer offer curb side pick-up either. Got tired of all the trash that people would put in the piles. On top of that the same people expect to pay nothing because "they did all of the work." No thanks!

I really get a kick out of the guys from the midwest telling us guys in new england to mulch leaves--that would be an exercise in futility

I worked for three seasons in Minnesota, four seasons in South Carolina, and the rest of my life in Vermont--New England has the most leaves by far and you have to own and know how to manage several different leaf control systems--from blowers and leaf plows to bagging systems and most definitely a truck loader

We take care of properties all less than 1.5 acres and with a three man crew we clean between 4 to 6 a day

Don't do it if your not hitting a homerun. If you dump for free still charge them a dumping fee. They need it gone, you need $$$$, and you have other jobs that could be getting done. If you find trash, rocks, or large sticks, toss them back into their yard. Keep your eyes open. It's a leaf vac not a wood chipper.